Candlelight Tour

The Saturday evening Candlelight Tour is exquisitely enchanting! As day turns
to dusk volunteers line the sidewalks along the Dogwood-Azalea Trail
with beautifully glowing white luminarias.

Residents cast spotlights on banks of brilliant azaleas and dazzling
dogwoods as softly suffused candlelight blazons beckoning footpaths
beneath the foliage festooning the thoroughfares. Many enjoy the Candlelight Tour
while trundling in the repose of their motor cars. Others see fit
to saunter along the sidewalk betwixt the lambent luminarias - finding friends old and new
while celebrating the sights and sounds of merryment emanating from private porticos
overlooking the Trail. Featured entertainment here and there along the way extends
to the Candlelight Tour an aura even more agreeable.

Location:

Along the Dogwood-Azalea Trail

NEW THIS YEAR FOR THE CANDLELIGHT TOUR!

The wealth of warm luminarias lining the sidewalks on Saturday evening, refulgent in the twilight, are an outright delight
to the senses. This year the the American Cancer Society will undertake a luminaria project
aimed at increasing cancer awareness and funding for a cure.

Luminarias marked "Relay for Life" may be purchased at the Chamber of Commerce
tent located in Rolwing Park or at the Chamber of Commerce office downtown from now until noon
on Saturday. Cost per luminaria is only $5 each. Luminarias may be dedicated in honor,
or in memory, of someone who has battled cancer.

Participation in this program is, of course, voluntary, and will be well received. The marked luminarias
will be interspersed among the plain white luminarias as volume dictates.

Carriage Rides

A Step Back in Time Pre-1880's Encampment

Here's your opportunity to step back in time by visiting with folks from a by-gone
era. Learn about fur trading and frontier skills, and observe useful crafts of the day.

See a blacksmith in action! Enjoy a homemade sarsaparilla! Touch real pelts
and hear about fur trading as you enjoy visiting with those camped in our "A Step Back in Time Pre-1880's
Encampment." The exhibitors will be outfitted in period garb working with
period tools and equipment. See interesting and practical crafts of the day demonstrated in
camp at Gordon Galemore Park during our Dogwood-Azalea Festival!

Friday from Noon to 5:00 p.m.
Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Built in 1899, the Historical Society's Moore Home is a lovely three story
home furnished with pieces authentic to the period. In 1977
the generous heirs of Joe and Carrie Moore gifted this beautiful Victorian country
home to the benefit of the Society. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places,
the seventeen room house contains seven fireplaces, and is fully furnished
including the original dining room furniture and gas chandelier.

Missouri Knights on Bikes - Bike Fest 2015

In conjunction with Special Olympics Missouri and Missouri Knights of Columbus,
the Missouri Knights on Bikes team has offered its assistance in helping in the cause
of supporting our $1,000,000.00 (Million Dollar) Challenge with the goal of the building a new
Training for Life Campus in Jefferson City, Missouri.

Click here
for more information and a Bike Fest 2015 registration form!

Please join us in Charleston for our Inaugural Bike Fest! We'll be here
all day Saturday!

Ice Cream Social

Dogwood-Azalea Parade

The Dogwood-Azalea Parade is one of the largest in the area! Find your viewing place
downtown or along Commercial Street Saturday morning before the 11:00 a.m. start time.

The Parade begins at City Hall. It will process southward on Main Street
to Commercial Street then turn to march eastward on Commercial Street -
all the way to the Bazaar at Dr. E. Charles Rolwing Park!

Limited group seating in a special viewing area downtown is available for charter groups.
Special Parade Seating: $5.00 per person.

REGISTER TO BE IN THE PARADE:

Please register by April 15, 2015, to save your place in the parade!

There is no fee to participate in the Dogwood-Azalea Festival Parade.
We encourage and appreciate your creative involvement!

Piano Praise Concerts

Seating is limited! Charter groups should reserve early!

Piano concerts with eight pianos, 16 pianists, and one organist will take place
Saturday at 1:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. and Sunday
at 3:30 p.m. The lovely music is sure to capture the attention of young and old
alike. Truly magnificent!

Plant Sale

Since 1952, the Molly French Garden Club has been supplying area gardeners
with azalea varieties hardy to the region. The sale will be held
Thursday through Saturday 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., and Sunday
from Noon to 4:00 p.m.

St. Henry Church Tour

Image courtesy of St. Henry Parish.

St. Henry Parish has occupied its property along Court Street since
1873. The Parish began construction of the current Romanesque edifice
in 1905, replacing a frame structure that had existed earlier. Archbishop
John J. Glennon dedicated the church on June 4, 1907.

Of particular interest are the beautifully life-like stained glass windows,
created by the Jacoby Art Glass Company of St. Louis, which were installed circa
1910. Three new bells, cast by Struckstede and Brothers of St. Louis,
were positioned in the bell tower during the summer of 1924. A two-manual pipe
organ, built by the Wicks Organ Company of Highland, Illinois, was installed
in 1936 framing the rose window of St. Cecilia.

Lest You Forget: The Sharecroppers Demonstration of 1939

Step back to a time when cotton was king, mules pulled the plows, and some of the sharecroppers
on the farms surrounding Charleston brought national and world-wide attention
to their dismal plight.

Evicted from the land, those sharecroppers moved their families and possessions
into makeshift lean-tos and tents erected along the shoulders and ditches of Highway 60
from Wyatt to Poplar Bluff and Highway 61 from Sikeston to Hayti during the cold winter
of 1939. Their stories stand largely unknown to a new generation - buried
in history until recently.